To make it even crazier, she knew her mom would have approved of Timothy … and she didn’t approve of anyone.
You chose him to handle your account, so you surely approved of him mom. You just didn’t know you were approving of him for me, or did you? So, thank you.
As his voicemail picked up, she spoke softly into the receiver, to keep those around her from hearing.
“Hey, you … sorry I missed you. You’re probably out deliberating or something. Maybe when I get back you can hold me in contempt of court. Call me.” She smiled as she hit the end button on her cell and picked up her overnight bag to board.
Chapter 42
After connecting through Dallas and landing in L.A., Chastity felt like she’d been traveling for days instead of hours. The finality of her trip hit her when she got her bags from the baggage claim and headed to meet Anne. Although she missed her friends and family in Oklahoma, there was no place like home.
“Chastity!” She heard from behind, spinning around just in time to see Anne, before she tackled her into a big hug.
“Hey you!” Anne squeezed her tight, before reaching for one of her bags. “Brent is circling with the car. I made him drop me off so I could surprise you.”
“Brent?” Chastity narrowed her twinkling eyes. “You’ve been keeping something from me?”
Anne smiled in return. “Not really. There just hasn’t been much to tell … besides, you’ve had your hands full with family matters and I didn’t want to bore you with anything that may or may not be happening back here.”
“Whatever!” Chastity smirked back. Her cell phone started to blare her new ring tone, which played ‘Love Shack’ by the B-52’s. She glanced down at the side pocket of her purse, and saw Timothy’s face popping up on her caller ID. She quickly pushed the button to silence it, and tucked it down deeper within her purse, out of view.
“So?” Anne asked, noticing the handsome mug on her friend’s phone before she could disguise it. “That’s a new ring tone you’ve downloaded, and…”
Chastity rolled her eyes and changed the subject. “Man, it’s good to be home. I’ve missed you!”
She pulled Anne in for another hug, hoping she’d let the subject drop.
“No, it’s not that easy miss Chaz! It looks like you’re the one who’s hiding something from me?” It was Anne’s turn to stare down her friend, and she loved every minute of it.
Chastity smiled and wrinkled her nose. “It’s nothing … really.”
“Nothing!” Anne’s eyes were the size of half dollars. “Okay, now I know it serious.”
“It’s maybe a little something.” Chastity couldn’t keep herself from smiling.
“Wow!” Anne said in amazement. “You’re in love!” She laughed out loud and continued, “ Man, I thought I was the one who would surprise you by being head over heels in ‘like’, but you’re in love!”
“I don’t know about that.” Chastity denied, but Anne wasn’t having any of it.
“You can’t fool me! You might be able to fool yourself, but not me. So, when do I meet him?”
Chastity clamped her lips together and cautiously nodded her head.
“Soon. He’s actually flying in tomorrow to spend a few days with me before I leave for Venice. I’ll bring him to the café to meet you and I guess … Brent?” She gave Anne the evil eye, which made her laugh again.
The horn honked and both girls jumped. Brent had been sitting there for a few minutes, waiting to see how long it would them to notice. Both were so caught up that they didn’t even see his car pull up along side the curb. Brent took Chastity in, and was amazed at the transformation.
She doesn’t even seem to be the same girl I met at the bar, before she left town. Even though it was only for a few minutes, I would have never imagined she could light up like that.
Anne had filled him in on what Chastity had endured in the last year. He could easily understand why she had been so uptight, the night he met the girls. She was grieving for her mother, and his cousin kept running his mouth.
Just having to deal with my cousin would be torture enough, he thought as he unbuckled his seatbelt. Although embarrassed by his cousin, he owed him a big one. Brent wouldn’t have had the courage to speak to Anne otherwise.
Other than that one night at the bar, he didn’t have any dealings with Chastity, but the change in her was obvious. She had gone from bitter to sweet. The time away had obviously done her some good.
He hopped out of the car, asking, “Are you two ready or what?”
He opened Anne’s door to let her in, and then proceeded to load Chastity’s bags in his trunk. Neither skipped a beat, as they continued to chat. Brent was sure he’d hear whatever it was all about on the way to take Chastity home.
“I wish you didn’t have to leave so soon, but I know you’ve put this trip off long enough.” Anne turned to face Chastity in the backseat.
“It’ll just be for three months, and then I’ll be back. You’ve got enough to keep your hands full with the café and other things, I’m sure.” Chastity smiled and raised her eyebrow in Brent’s direction.
“I’ll keep her busy alright,” Brent chimed in and reached over to hold Anne’s hand. Anne squeezed it, and gave him a look, which wasn’t lost on Chastity. Her friend was falling harder than she’d like to think.
“So you’ve officially quit your job at the children’s art center?” Brent asked, looking in the review mirror.
“Yep, I quit. I’ll still volunteer when I’m back in town, but I can’t take a salaried position any longer. In fact, I decided to make a small donation to help them out for the next few years.”
“Julia has asked me if you’re able to put together enough for next exhibit. She’s already had people in asking when you were scheduled.” Anne pulled out Julia’s number from her purse and handed it back to Chastity. “She asked me to have you call her when you get in town.”
“I’ll have enough. Maybe I’ll leave her with a few pieces to sell in her gallery when I’m gone, and I’ll be working on a lot of new things, while in Venice.”
“Have you worked on much while you were gone?” Brent asked, trying to stay involved in the conversation.
“Actually I have. This whole trip has been so cathartic, and I’ve done some sketches of childhood memories and portraits of new family members. I plan on showcasing some of those at Julia’s while I’m gone, but,” she paused, “I think I’m going in a different direction for my new exhibit.”
“Such as?” Anne asked.
“Venice is so romantic, and I’ve not explored a lot of that before in my work. I think I’m going to wait and let the environment take me in whatever direction it pulls me into.”
“Well, don’t tell your new boyfriend that!” Anne laughed.
That sounded so weird to Chastity. My boyfriend. Well he was, wasn’t he?
“I meant with my art, silly.” She chuckled to herself and let her mind wander to the romance Venice held. Since Timothy was considering a trip to visit her, she wondered what effect it would have on them.
Chapter 43
Lauri made her trek to the nursing home to see her father in law once again, except this time it was with a much lighter heart. She brought a framed picture of Chastity and Alex, hoping that maybe … just maybe … Jackson would be lucid enough to recognize the significance of it, as alongside his grandson was his long lost granddaughter.
She would have loved to bring the real thing to him - live and in person - but she couldn’t force Chastity to do anything she wasn’t ready to. Lauri didn’t blame her.
If I were in her shoes, I wouldn’t want to visit Jackson either.
She reached in her bag for the photo, when she felt the bulky envelope Jesse asked her to mail to Chastity. She wondered what was inside, but it wasn’t her place to ask. She just needed to remember to mail it.
Lauri pushed the door open to Jackson’s room just in time to see him close his book.
“Go
od Morning, Jackson!” She sang as she came in.
“Ah, Lauri. Aren’t we in a good mood today?” His clear eyes spoke volumes.
“Yes, I am.” She leaned in to kiss his cheek. “What’s your choice today?”
“War and Peace. Care to discuss it?” He asked for the one-hundredth time. Lauri simply shook her head and gave her standard reply, before going into her usual banter about Alex.
“How is my boy doing? I bet he’s breaking hearts right and left. Why, when I was a boy I had that same Mikale swagger … even at a young age.” He softly chuckled, but stopped when he saw the photo she pushed into his hands.
“Here … I wanted you to have an updated photo of your grandson.”
Jackson’s eyes darkened as he searched Lauri’s face. She could tell he was trying to put the pieces together. Jackson looked to the photo and stared down to the girl with the green eyes, who was smiling next to his grandson, and suddenly felt ill. He wanted to know why she looked so familiar, but couldn’t open his mouth to speak. Soon he forgot what he was doing at all.
Lauri saw him slip behind the veil of his darkness, and knew the opportunity to talk about Chastity had passed. She covered his hands with hers.
“Jackson.” She searched his eyes. It never failed to surprise her to see how lucid he could be only seconds before withdrawing back down into himself. She did the only thing she knew to do at the moment.
“Jackson, she’s okay. The picture is of Alex and Chastity.” She put emphasis on his granddaughter’s name. “I finally understand why you’ve been asking about her. She’s a part of our family now. I wanted you to have this picture. Chastity is home, Jackson.”
He heard someone mumbling, as he stared out the window. He knew he should listen, but was at a loss. The name Chastity seemed important, but couldn’t put it together.
I’ll worry about it tomorrow … what was it I was supposed to remember?
Lauri watched as he slipped deeper into himself. She quietly took the picture from his hands, and put it on his bookcase. She turned to leave, hoping the next time he’d be able to grasp the good news.
One way or the other, she would make sure to take another baby step toward getting him the closure he needed. Hopefully somewhere inside, he would come to understand that he had both grandchildren.
She slowly walked out, and reached in her purse for the envelope to mail to Chastity.
Chapter 44
Timothy pulled up in front of Chastity’s apartment none to soon. He missed her more than he’d like to admit, and wasn’t ready for her to leave again.
I don’t know if I can do this long distance thing.
Only time would tell if it was meant to be, but he was already thinking about their options. The attraction he felt when he first met her was obvious, and now that he’d had time with her it only grew into something that he wasn’t ready to label.
Oklahoma proved one thing to him … that she was someone that he wanted to invest some time in for the long haul. Chastity wasn’t someone to take lightly. In fact, she was a force to be reckoned with.
He smiled as he thought of her running up the stairs at the memorial in Oklahoma City. As confusing as that time was, it tickled him to recall how fast that photographer packed up and ran from her. She was a fighter, and the fire churning within her wasn’t something that couldn’t be harnessed. Timothy didn’t want to. He just wanted to be close to it … to take every part of her in.
It wasn’t hard to picture her when she wasn’t around. He didn’t need a photo as a reminder. She was so far engrained in his mind that she was hard to shake from his thoughts.
So far, he liked everything about her. Every part of her was exactly what he wanted in someone - her spunk, her style, of course - her looks and mind. Chastity was the whole package that every man wanted … what Timothy wanted.
Chastity heard Timothy’s engine, as he pulled into her driveway. She threw open her front door and ran full force, almost knocking him down as he exited his car.
Timothy wrapped his arms around her and breathed her in. He couldn’t ever remember being this happy. It blew him away how perfectly she fit into his arms, fell into his heart, and captivated his mind.
Suddenly, the impact Chastity hit him with wasn’t the only thing that had him reeling. Taken aback, he pulled away to search her face. It was then that he came to the realization that he was in love. Timothy knew it should have scared him, but as he looked into her loving eyes … he felt peace.
Why didn’t I see it before?
After being with Chastity, he didn’t want to be anywhere without her. Now he just had to convince her that he fit into her world. Los Angeles wasn’t too far from San Francisco, but Venice was a world away.
Chastity watched his wheels spin, as he searched her face. She thought about asking what deep thoughts were behind his soulful eyes, but couldn’t wait any longer to sample what they shared in Oklahoma. She reached for his face and leaned into him.
MMM … just as good as I remembered, she thought as a groan escaped from her throat.
“It’s so good to see you again,” he softly whispered in her ear and kissed her neck.
She rolled her head back, unable to move. He left her feeling powerless.
“Okay, now I’m the one putting on the brakes. If you keep that up, we’ll never get to the café to meet Anne,” she sighed.
“Did you have to schedule that so close to when I got here? I’d like a little alone time.” He pulled back and looked down at her.
“I know, but I figured we’d get the meet and greet out of the way as soon as possible. Then we’re not obligated and we’ll have the rest of the weekend to ourselves. Something we’ve not had before, so it should be fun.”
Timothy internally groaned. He wanted to take this weekend at Chastity’s pace and go by her rules, but he was going to have a hard time restraining himself. She pulled him by the wrists and led him into her apartment.
“Come take the short tour. You can drop your bags over there,” she said pointing to the couch. “This is my place.” She stood in the great room. “From here, you can see the kitchen, the study, and my bedroom. Not much, but it’s home.”
Her place was a clear reflection of her taste and style, which was eclectic and passionate. Her walls showcased bold art, which that left him no doubt that they had to be hers. Her furniture, obviously all hand-me-downs, were all unique one of a kind pieces.
“I like what you’ve done with the place.” He turned a full circle and stopped when he saw a photo of the two of them on her desk. “This is from that day at the park,” he said in amazement. “So when I asked about the incident …you said it was taken care of. I didn’t think you’d track the guy down and have him taken care of! How’d you get this?”
“No, Silly!” She rolled her eyes. “I told you all about Jesse, right?”
“Yeah.”
“These were the photo’s he’d received from the private investigator from the park. He gave me the disk, and I waited to surprise you with this. It’s the one part of that day that I would go back and do again in a heart beat.”
“I’d do it all over again … well almost all of it,” he gruffly responded.
She pulled her desk drawer out and handed him a frame. “Here, I made a copy for you. It’s our first official picture.” She stopped herself from saying the rest of the sentence.
“As a couple?” He didn’t hesitate to finish it for her.
Chastity nodded. “Yeah, I guess so.”
Timothy squeezed her hand. How in the world was he going to keep a respectful distance at night if she kept smiling at him like that?
“Let’s go meet Anne.” She grabbed her purse and headed for the door. “It will be painless, I promise!”
The café was only a few miles away. Anne called that morning to let her know she was short staffed, but the truth of the matter was – she gave her manager the day off. She wanted to make sure she gave Chastity and Timothy their privac
y. As excited as she was to meet her friend’s dream guy, she wouldn’t dream of monopolizing their time. Chastity wasn’t one to waste her time on just anyone, so she knew this one had to be someone pretty special.
As they walked in, Anne thought they looked like two kids with their first crush. Chastity was beaming at her new boyfriend, who couldn’t keep his eyes off her. What a pair they made with their striking good looks. Chastity, who was tall, thin, and elegant, and Timothy, who looked like someone who could clean up playing rugby, while still sweeping someone off their feet on the dance floor. He was the handsome all American man. They complimented each other perfectly.
Anne made her way from behind the counter. “Right over here guys.” She directed them to the most private booth she had. “Sorry I couldn’t get off to spend more time with you, but my manager called in sick,” Anne lied.
“That’s okay, we’re just glad to see you at all. Anne – this is Timothy.”
“Nice to meet you,” they said in unison, and shook hands.
Nice handshake, she thought. Firm but not too powerful … balanced.
“Here are some menu’s. I’ll be back in a few to take your order. I’ve got a customer I have to go check on.”
As Anne walked away, Chastity looked her menu over, and said, “I’m in the mood for appetizers. Hope you don’t mind.” She stood to grab a pitcher of water and a couple of glasses.
“Not at all. I ate on the way up so that’ll be perfect.” He poured their water. “So … Anne seems nice.”
“Yeah, I’ll bet a million dollars that her manager didn’t call in sick. She probably gave him the day off.” Chastity smiled.
“Why would she do that when she could sit with us, and give me the inquisition?”
“Because she knows how much I like you and how fast time flies. She wants me to spend all my time with you while you’re here.”
Finding Kylie Page 19